This isn't a surprise. It was always known that commissioner Bud Seligwouldn't block the deal. There really wasn't any precedent to do so, and he could always note that both organizations believed the trade was good for their long-term health.

"After a thorough examination of this information," Selig's statement read, "it's my conclusion that this transaction, involving established Major Leaguers and highly regarded young players and prospects, represents the exercise of plausible baseball judgment on the part of both Clubs, does not violate any express rule of Major League Baseball and does not otherwise warrant the exercise of any of my powers to prevent its completion."

Fine. But what about the mental health of baseball fans in Miami? In the long term that has been damaged, possibly beyond repair, unless Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria surrenders his team.

The Marlins have acted like the always-forgiven and spoiled significant other while Miami has played the role of exhausted but soft counterpart. The city hated Loria's salary dump after the team won the World Series in 2003, but after rough years filled with neglect, Miami decided to pay for most of Loria's new home, Marlins Park.

Loria helped win back South Florida's trust by spending heavily on free agents last winter. But at the first sign of trouble and before the team was out of the playoff picture, Loria and his henchmen started to sell off parts, first starting pitcher Anibal Sanchez and then Hanley Ramirez along with smaller pieces before the July 31 trade deadline.

"Baseball is a social institution with important social responsibilities, and I fully understand that the Miami community has done its part to put the Marlins into a position to succeed with beautiful new Marlins Park," Selig said. "Going forward, I will continue to monitor this situation with the expectation that the Marlins will take into account the sentiments of their fans, who deserve the best efforts and considered judgment of their club. I have received assurances from the ownership of the Marlins that they share these beliefs and are fully committed to build a long-term winning team that their fans can be proud of."

The Marlins lost 93 games last season, but they grew significantly worse once those July trades happened. People seem to forget that this team probably wasn't that bad until the front office made it clear it was scrapping the plan it sold to the public just seven months before.

"We've finished in last place the past two years, and that is unacceptable," Loria said in a statement. "It's incumbent on us to make the changes necessary to make us a winner again. It may not happen overnight. But with the players we acquired in the second half of last season, coupled with the infusion of players we are acquiring now, we will be returning to Marlins baseball: high energy and hungry."

Approval of this trade, which was a formality (and Selig's eyes probably did not probe too deeply into Loria's practices), will have ramifications. Miami will continue to look like a bad baseball town because its new ballpark was just assured microscopic attendance for years to come, and the city, along with players, won't ever trust ownership again.

Another fallout, although this will probably be a positive one, will be that cities will stop approving publicly funded stadiums for professional teams. The risk of being burned is too great and too painful.